What to expect when building a house?
So you’ve decided that you want to build your dream home? Congratulations.
Building a home unique to your lifestyle is an amazing experience. But it can be stressful if you don’t have an experienced team to work with you through the process.
With so much information available, we’ve teamed up with one of our trusted partners Kyle Keirnan from Keibuild Homes to help you understand and navigate the building process.
Kyle’s biggest advice is to not be afraid to ask questions. He says the more questions the better and if your mortgage broker or builder of choice doesn’t want to answer them, then find someone who will.
“This is one of the biggest investments you’ll ever make, so there is no such thing as a silly question,” he says.
Here are the steps you can expect to go through:
Step 1: Arrange pre-approval with your mortgage broker
Before you start looking for land or getting quotes from builders, it’s a good idea to visit your mortgage broker first.
They will be able to assess your financial situation, apply for pre-approval on your behalf and get you in a good financial position so when you’re ready to build you can rest assured that your finances are in good hands and you can let the fun begin.
Knowing how much you could borrow will also help you when it comes to looking at land and building packages, so you don’t over commit to something you may not be able to afford in the future.
Your financial broker can also assist you with any First Home Owner Grants that are available and assess your eligibility.
Step 2: Finding land
The first thing you want to do is to find the perfect place to build your dream home.
When searching around it’s a great idea to plan ahead and have some kind of idea about the type of home you want to build so there is enough room for everything you want. How many rooms will you need in the next couple of years, will you want to add a shed or a pool? Planning now for the future will ensure your new build will grow with you.
When looking for land, always ask when it will be registered as major processes such as soil testing and council approval cannot happen until your land is registered.
If you’re not sure where to start in looking for land, you can also explore the available house and land packages. This type of land is usually located in new estates and the advertised price will give you a good idea on what you could achieve with your budget.
Step 3: Find a builder and get quotes
Now is the time to find a builder you want to work with. Kyle advises seeking a few quotes so you can be comfortable with what you are getting and making sure the price is competitive.
“Do your due diligence and make sure you’re happy with the whole process and ask questions so you know exactly what each builder is offering,” he says.
“It can be a stressful process, but at Keibuild Homes we pride ourselves on being transparent, so when it comes to comparing quotes you know exactly what is included in the price and there won’t be any hidden extras.”
During the quote seeking phase your prospective builder will discuss your needs, lifestyle and future goals of your family to ensure they create the home you want.
The quote you receive in this phase is a preliminary quote only and may change depending on the next step.
Step 4: Pay your deposit and approve your plans and a preliminary quote
Once the initial quote is approved, your preliminary agreement is signed and your preliminary deposit is paid, the building process will begin.
Deposits required at this stage is usually around the $3000 deposit mark depending on the size of your land.
This deposit covers relevant tests and surveys such as soil classification, wind ratings and pre-lodgement of advice to building certifiers. This such as soil classification can affect the cost of your build. For example, some soil may require piers in the ground to allow for movement.
After the foundational data is known preliminary drawings can be drawn for review and structural designs engineered.
Kyle advises that all contracts signed for building should always include a “subject to” finance and soil testing clause, particularly if buying land and building from scratch.
Step 5: The fun part – colour selection time
This is where your home comes to life. You’ll select colours, finishes, tapware, tiles and more.
As part of this stage, you will attend a meeting with a qualified interior designer supplied by the building company to select everything – inside and out.
Once this is completed, the building contract can be finalised and you’ll know the final quoted price, taking into account all the information which has now been gathered.
Your building contract will then be forwarded back to your mortgage broker to continue with finalising your loan.
Step 6: Let the building begin
Once you sign your contract and your finance is approved the building can begin.
Bear in mind that construction start time will be dictated by the time it takes your local council to approve your build. This can be anywhere from two to eight weeks.
Building completion can take anywhere from four to six months or perhaps more for larger more detailed homes. But your completion time will be specified in your contract.
Keibuild Homes offers customisable home, house and land packages and demolish and new re-builds. For more on the building process see this amazing guide.
You can also download the Keibuild app and start exploring your options.
Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/_Gj8cuC4b9c

Patrick Cranshaw, a Certified Mortgage Professional for over 21 years, founded North Brisbane Home Loans in 2002. His career began with ANZ Bank in New Zealand, where he progressed over 16 years to a Business Banking role in Virginia. After moving to Brisbane in 2000, Patrick led the QLD market for a home loan agency, helped set up the REMAX Real Estate Finance division, and practiced as a broker.